Hope
by KeaJade
Summary: 15 years ago Irvine left. Now a girl comes looking of him. What does she want with him? Why does she remind him of someone he knew a long time ago? IM


Disclaimer: I don't own any aspect of Zoids.

She came into town on a Tuesday. It was hot that day, sun beating down, no wind, everything seemed dead. I was at the bar trying to get drunk. I say trying because it doesn't seem like I can anymore. She came in and sat two stools down from me. Ordered a Shirley Temple. The bartender looked at her funny, but made it for her anyway. She never looked up from her glass, just sat there staring at the red liquid, taking a sip every once in a while. She was too young to be alone. And in a place like this. About the same age as…. I stopped that thought and ordered another drink. I drank. The girl stared. The bartender cleaned.

Didn't see her again 'til two nights later. The rain finally came that night, reviving everything. She was sitting on the edge of a street in the next town over, just staring up as the rain came down. She was crying. How I could tell in that rain, I had no idea. I took her home with me, back to my apartment. She didn't resist. Put her to sleep in my bed. I slept on the couch. 

I awoke to the sound of water running. Pissed off at the fact that someone was using my shower, I was about to go in there and complain, but then I remembered the girl. She'd probably be hungry when she was done. I got out some food and put it on the table. She came out of the bathroom wearing the same clothes she had on yesterday. But her hair was different. Cleaner, not as scraggly, and the way she had it up reminded of someone I knew. A long time ago.

She stood in the doorway staring at me. Those eyes. I've only seen those eyes on one other person. Someone else from a very long time ago. She looked over to the table at the food.

"It's for you." I answered her inquisitive look. She practically sprinted to the table. She acted like she hadn't eaten in days. She looked that way too. "So what are you doing in these parts?" I asked her.

"Looking for someone." She answered in between bites.

"Who, some old friend?"

"Nope. I never knew him. The lady who takes care of me wants me to find him. It's important. Says his name was Irvine. I've got a picture of him. Maybe you've seen him. He's the one in the back." She reached into a pocket of her oversized coat and pulled out a slightly crumpled photograph. She handed it to me. It was a picture of five people, all smiling, looking like they were having a great time. It was a picture I hadn't looked at in over 15 years. The memories of that day came rushing back the longer I stared at the picture. 

It was a day Rudolph came to visit us at the base, the first day in a few years we were all back together. Fiona wanted a picture of all of us for old time sakes. She got Dr. D to take it. Rudolph was in the front and Fiona and Van had their arms around him. I was standing in the back with my arms crossed and Moonbay was leaning on my shoulder smiling like only she could. Moonbay…. I tried not to think of them. I left them for a reason none of them knew. I couldn't go back to face them.

"No, I've never seen him." I said, handing the picture back to her. I tried not to look her in the eyes, I didn't think I'd be able to lie to those eyes.

"Oh. Well thanks anyway. I gotta go now. I really need to find this guy." She got up from the table, shoving some food into her pockets, and started walking out. I looked at her back. _It's important _she had said. 

"What's so important about this guy?" I called out to her.

"My guardian, the lady in the picture with hair like mine, wants to see him one last time."

"One last time?"

"Yeah. She, Moonbay's her name, she's dying." Liquid flooded her eyes. She turned away so I couldn't see her. She wanted to seem so strong, but I knew she was hurting badly on the inside.

"Oh." I really didn't know what else to say. Moonbay, my Moonbay. I loved her once, a long time ago. I left for her sake. One day I knew I'd go back and find her. I never thought it would happen like this.

"Yeah." The girl wiped her eyes and started out the door again. "Goodbye, thanks for the food."

"Wait!" I called out. I knew it was time. I walked over to the desk and opened the top drawer. I hadn't opened that drawer in a long time, a very long time. The same picture was lying there. "I'm the guy you're looking for, I'm Irvine." I picked up the picture and handed it to the girl. She looked at it, looked at her copy, and then looked up at me. 

"Your hair's longer now. And you don't have the eye thing." She smiled a little then came over and grabbed my arm. "Come with me then. She needs you." Her eyes were pleading. Those eyes. I knew those eyes. I've only seen those eyes on one other person. 

"Fiona. Your eyes, they're the same as Fiona's." I couldn't move. Her eyes seemed to hold me in place.

"Moonbay would tell me the same thing. I'm Fiona's daughter." 

That struck a blow. Why didn't I hear about this? Of course. I left. I knew nothing of them for over 15 years. "Her daughter?" I didn't understand why this surprised me so much.

"Yeah. But that's not important right now. We have to go. I can explain everything on the way."

We took my jeep. I don't have a zoid anymore. I had to sell it for money. We had a day of travel ahead of us. Back to the base I deserted way back then. I made her explain everything. Starting with her name.

"Hope. That's what Moonbay named me. For the hope she has that everything will get better, she used to say. My mother didn't give me a name before…before she left." For some reason she turned away from me.

Fiona left? That really didn't sound like her. "Why?"

Hope took a couple of deep breaths before she started the story. "It really wasn't her decision." She looked straight ahead, staring out the window as if staring directly into the past. "It was a year after you left. I was born a day before a huge zoid battle. My mother was holding me when Raven attacked the base. Moonbay came in to be with my mother as my father, Van, ran to fight. A half an hour later the report came in. The Blade Liger was destroyed. My mother didn't hesitate. Just handed me over to Moonbay and ran out. Ran straight over to where the Liger had fallen. She was shot just as she reached my father body. They died together, Moonbay kept telling me, That was the only good thing about it.

"She raised me after that. Taught me everything she knew about zoids. Told me memories of the past. Of my parents. Of you. You were a very important topic to her. She loved you. She told me that once. She told me everything. She was more of a friend to me then my guardian. My best friend.

"She got sick a few months ago. We thought it was just a cold. But she never seemed to get better. One day she collapsed. She was taken to the hospital on the base. We found out it was a disease. It was slowing wearing her health down. She was dying, we all knew it. I stayed by her everyday, only leaving the room to get things. One day she asked me to get the photo on her dresser. When I brought it to her, she took one look and started crying. I didn't know what to do. Eventually she calmed down. She told me to contact Rudolph, tell him to come. I did. Before he got there, she sent me to find you. 'Find this man', she said to me, 'Find me Irvine. I want to see him one last time.'

"When I left they were looking for a cure. Everyday I'm out here I hope they can find one. They haven't yet. I call there every night to check up. She doesn't seem to be getting any better. But she doesn't seem to get that much worse. It took me a long time to track you down. I finally got a clue to where you might be. I followed it and that's how I found you."

Neither of us said anything for a long time after she finished. We just drove on in silence. I didn't know what she was thinking, but all I could think about was Moonbay, my Moonbay. I had to get to her before…before…I didn't want to think of the consequences if we were too late.

The base was just like it was when I left. Hope took me straight to the hospital. The doctors told us Rudolph came. But he had to get back and couldn't stay long. He left a week ago. Hope went in first. I stayed in the hall. I didn't know if I could go in. 

"She's awake." Hope came into the hallway. "Come on, she wants to talk to you." She pulled me into the room. My feet didn't seem to work. Moonbay was in the bed, surrounded by machines that were attached to her. She looked different, older, thinner. But to me she still looked beautiful. She smiled when she saw me. The smile that I loved about her. I tried to stop them, but my eyes started to water anyway. Hope looked between the two of us, and left the room. She wanted us to be alone.

"Irvine." Moonbay shakily raised herself into a sitting position. "I missed you."

I walked closer, sat in the chair next to her bed. I held her hand in mine. "Moonbay, I'm sorry." Tears leaked down my face.

"Don't be. It's not your fault I'm sick."

"No, but I left you. I shouldn't have. I should have stayed here with you." 

"Irvine," I looked at her. "Shut up. You left for a reason. I don't know what it was, but I'm sure it was important. At least you came back. That's all that matters to me." That smile never left her lips. I didn't understand how she could smile at a time like this. But that was Moonbay for you.

"I have to tell you something, Moonbay. Something I should have said a long time ago."

"I know what it is." She said before I could speak again. "So just stop talking and kiss me." I did. For that one moment everything seemed right in the world. I didn't want it to change from that.

"I love you too Irvine."

We had the funeral a week later. Rudolph couldn't make it. He was too busy. We buried her right next to Fiona and Van. I knew I'd be buried there one day too. Hope stood next to me. She was crying, crying like when I found her in the rain. I put my arm around her. She had no home now, no family to live with. So I took her back with me. She packed up her stuff and Moonbay's and we drove back to my apartment. That's where we lived together. She reminded me so much of Moonbay. I told her the memories I had of her parents, of Rudolph, of Moonbay. She listened to them all over and over, gazing off like she was gazing into the past, watching as they happened. Once every year we'd drive back to the base to visit their graves. We would just stand there and stare, stare into the past, into our memories. And that was what helped us go on.

A/N: I don't know what possessed me to write about the death of my favorite character, but I just had to. I hope you don't hate me for it.


End file.
